Thousands of protesters rallied in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday against President Trump’s crack down on illlegal immigration and his aggressive deportation policies.
Draped in Mexican and Salvadoran and flags, demonstrators gathered near City Hall shortly before noon, blocking traffic at Spring and Temple streets, amid honking horns and solidarity messages from passing motorists. Protesters blasted a mix of traditional and contemporary Mexican music from a loudspeaker, including “Por mi Mexico” by Lefty Sm & Santa Fe Klan.
Trump has declared a crisis at the southern border and released a flurry of executive orders aimed at revamping the country’s immigration system and promising to deport millions of undocumented people. Protesters told the Times that it was those actions that prompted them to rally downtown
By 1 p.m., the number of protesters ballooned to several thousand, with some carrying signs that said, “MAGA – Mexicans always get across,” “Don’t bite the hand that feeds you,” referring to the state’s agricultural workers, and, “I drink my horchata warm because f … I.C.E,” a reference to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.
Nailah Esparza, 18, said it was her first protest and that she learned about it roughly a week ago from TikTok videos. She held a sign in Spanish that read, “ No more I.C.E. raids, no more fear, we want justice and a better world.”
“I decided it was actually something that was very important, so we decided to show support, because of the youth,” said Esparza, who is Mexican American. “We’re very passionate about what we’re here for.”
Another protester, who identified himself only as Rey out of privacy concerns, brought a sign that read, “Trump eat caca. Beware the Nazis.” He said he protested Trump’s immigration policies during his first term as president.
“We thought we were done with his administration,” said Rey, who is Mexican American. “And now we have to do this again.”
The protest was mostly peaceful, but things appeared to ratchet up when the driver of a silver Mustang began doing donuts in the intersection. Soon after, police arrived on the scene as dozens of protesters walked onto the nearby 101 Freeway, while hundreds more crowded overpasses, waving flags and holding signs.
A short time later, the acrid smell of burning tires hung in the air as trucks and motorcycles did noisy burnouts on a 101 Freeway overpass, drawing cheers and cameras amid the noisy din of car horns, police sirens and helicopters overhead.
Promising the largest deportation effort in U.S. history, President Trump, in his first days in office, declared a “national emergency” at the southern border, deploying troops there and releasing a dramatic series of executive orders and other policy changes intended to reshape the country’s immigration system.
Trump’s orders sharply limit legal pathways for entering the U.S., bolster enforcement efforts to seal off the U.S.-Mexico border, and promote aggressive sweeps to round up and deport people living in the U.S. illegally. Some of the orders have already been challenged in court, and advocates said others could be soon.
There are an estimated 11 million to 15 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S., including more than 2 million in California.
That includes people who crossed the border illegally, people who overstayed their visas and people who have requested asylum. It does not include people who entered the country under various temporary humanitarian programs, or who have obtained Temporary Protected Status, which gives people the right to live and work in the U.S. temporarily because of disasters or strife in their home countries.
Times reporters Jessica Garrison and Rebecca Plevin contributed to this report.
